Just having returned from 12 days in Iceland, I still am processing the time away and trying to put the whole experience in perspective. When my husband and I planned this trip to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary, we had no idea that it would cap a particularly challenging stretch of time in our home. Needless to say, when we got on the plane, we were thrilled to be getting away, just the two of us. We drove the Ring Road which is a great way to see the country and offers a chance to experience the drastically different vistas that change about every 100 km.  From glaciers to lava formations, from mountain to ocean views, each day was a different adventure. Some of the land is broken up by geysers that shoot out of the ground or boiling mud pits that smell of sulfur; in other spots, the volcanic lava cooled in such a way that there are tubes and caves where you can bravely venture inside. And then there is the light! As a glass artist, I am often captivated by daylight and, in Iceland in the summer, night is really only a few hours of dusky twilight. The light also changes dramatically depending on whether the sun is out or, as was the case frequently, it is raining a steady Icelandic drizzle. I took these two photos above at the same beach on different days-- the beach, appropriately called "Diamond Beach," is near a lagoon where chunks of the glacier break off and sail out to sea. I loved the contrasting textures of the ice chunks that washed up on the black sand beach but was blown away by how different the beach appeared, just a day apart, because of the weather. It reminded me of the importance of perspective: that when things appear dark, it's best to hang tight and wait to see how the world changes when the sun comes back out. For more pictures of Iceland, check out my Facebook page. Or just ask-- I'm happy to share more about it!